Forum on HIV and Mental Health: weight and hiv

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		weight and hiv Sep 2, 2007 why is it hard for hiv people to gain weight and in how many instances is this the case? is this really prevalenet among hiv people? and why? at what stage does this occur in hiv? when you get it, later on? thanks


		Response from Dr. Horwath Inability to gain weight and weight loss are sometimes symptoms of HIV infection. In severe cases, HIV wasting can occur. However, weight loss is not an inevitable consequence of HIV infection. There are a variety of factors that can contribute to weight loss when it does occur. These include metabolic changes, loss of appetite (due to illness or as a side effect of medications), hormonal changes (eg. lower testosterone levels), chronic diarrhea and malabsorption, and immunologic factors (eg. HIV can stimulate the release of chemicals called cytokines that can alter metabolism). HIV wasting tends to occur in more advanced stages of HIV infection.

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